Hackers stole nearly $1M from Save the Children charity

BOSTON – Save the Children says hackers stole nearly $1 million from the non-profit through a sophisticated email scam.

The Boston Globe reports that scammers hacked into the email of a worker at the charity’s U.S. offices last year, posed as an employee, and created false invoices and other documents to fool the non-profit into sending nearly $1 million to a fraudulent entity in Japan.

The scammers claimed the money was needed to purchase solar panels for health centres in Pakistan, a country where Save the Children has worked for decades.

The Save the Children Federation , the Fairfield, Connecticut-based U.S. affiliate of the international organization, said its insurance reimbursed all but $112,000 of the stolen funds.

The charity has since tightened its cybersecurity and bank transfer protocols to prevent fraud.

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Information from: The Boston Globe, http://www.bostonglobe.com